Gambling Addiction Basics

By Mansi Aggarwal

The coming age has brought with it numerous new pathological addictions, one of them being addiction to gambling. Pathological gambling was conferred with the status of a disease by the American Psychiatric Association back in 1980s. Robert L. Custer, M.D., is a pioneer in this field of problem gambling.
People who fall prey to this addiction are usually those who secure an income by means of blackjack, poker or other gambling activities. They are professional players who visit casinos not for fun sake, but to employ their skills and earn.
Based on their way of playing and the driving force behind it, gamblers can be categorized. For example, while professional gamblers are skillful and good in their game a casual gamblers plays merely for recreation.
The symptoms of gambling addiction are usually hard to identify. Since this disease is different from other substance related addictions like drug or alcohol abuse, the indications of this sickness are subtle. The nearest possible way in which the symptoms of this addiction can be stated is through the "Custer three Phase Model". According tot his model, the gambling addiction can be characterized by three phases: the wining phase, the losing phase and the desperation phase.
In the wining stage, the compulsive gambler is ecstatic and overexcited with this earnings and is unwilling to quit gambling. Therefore, the addict usually increases his intensity of gambling . However, losing being the other half of gambling, his wining streak is short-lived. Nonetheless, recurrent losses do not deter him as he wants to win again and get his money back. Addicted gamblers suffer from financial stress, loss of sleep, and mental fatigue in this phase. They face problems at the family front. The patient also tends to borrow huge amounts or avail some money making schemes. As the gambler continues to face loss on every alternate day, he finds it difficult to stay away from gambling. Compulsive gamblers may resort to any means to raise funds for their obsession. They become desperate, with their debts becoming unmanageable. Loss of jobs, fight with friends and family, committing crimes or suicidal tendencies define this phase.
The question as to why does one gamble, can not be answered in definitive terms. One of the dominant reasons is the mental health of the gambler. For some people gambling serves as a n escape route from their lives. A compulsive gambler plays for kicks. He is just unable to stay away from it. Many researchers also blame the easy accessibility to casinos. The government and its lottery fund is also widely condemned.
Treatment programs and centers exist to treat this disease. Regular therapy and counseling is an effective and a widely used technique to cure this disease. Various support groups have also cropped up, where the addicts share their experiences and strengthen each others desire to quit gambling. Some groups that fund such programs include casinos and state lotteries. Some casinos lay stress on responsible gambling and have taken steps to make the people aware about his addiction.
However the first step, before undertaking nay treatment would be to acknowledge this disease. With very slight symptoms and effects this addiction is difficult to catch and acknowledge. Hence it helps to be aware to act wisely.

Mansi Aggarwal writes about gambling addiction. Learn more at [http://www.gamblingaddictinfo.com]

History of Schizophrenia - Origination and Meaning

By Jared Wright

Schizophrenia is a type of mental disorder in which a person suffers from distorted perception of real life and very often losing touch with reality. Originating from the Geek word: schizo (split) and phrene (mind), it is a mental disorder with a long history.
Schizophrenia in 2000B.C.
The history of Schizophrenia dated back to around 2000 B.C., when little was known about mental disorders. It was believed that the person who is suffering from mental disturbances has been invaded by an evil spirit and the only way to cure the disorder is by driving out the evil spirit. In those times, there were many types of exorcism method. One was to made patients listen to music in order to drive the evil spirit out, another brutal one see patients skull being drill to provide a way for the spirits to get out.
Schizophrenia as understood by the Egyptians
A mention of mental disorders and their symptoms is there in The Book of Heart, an Egyptian book. The Egyptians believed that the heart and brain are interlinked. Therefore, according to their belief, a person who is suffering from certain mental disorder must be suffering from certain heart problems as well. All the people suffering from Schizophrenia were considered mad and dangerous, in spite of the display of their normal human characteristics at all other times. The only refuges for them were the mental homes. Such misunderstanding stayed for a very long time before researchers came up with a scientific explanation to dispel the misconception.
Evolution in the understanding of Schizophrenia
Initial efforts to understand and record atypical mental behaviors were made in the seventeenth century. Later in 1887, Emile Kraepelin, a German psychiatrist, started to record and put into place the different types of mental disorders and defined them by one term: dementia praecox. It was not until the nineteenth century before people begin to gain more awareness about diseases and their causes. It was not until the turn of the century before we saw many new medical science breakthrough findings. Schizophrenia, as a mental illness was coined by a Swiss psychiatrist named Eugen Bleuler in 1908. The definition and symptoms of Schizophrenia that we are using today was put up by another German psychiatrist,Kurt Schneider, in 1957.
Regardless of the progression in medical science, there were few people who were unable to accept the logic and explanation of science and for their benefit continued to commit cruelty towards human race, one such example is the case of World War II. During the World War II Schizophrenia was identified to be a genetic disorder and in order to prevent transmission of the condition from one generation to another and practice selective procreation, mentally disturbed people were killed.
Despite of such pathetic examples in the history of Schizophrenia, psychiatrists, doctors and scientists have never given up hope and have worked day and night for advancement in the understanding of Schizophrenia. Many misconceptions about Schizophrenia have become clear. Today, instead of brutally treating the patients, considering the patients mad and sending them to asylum, society is becoming able to accept the fact that such patients need understanding and sympathy. To help treat and relieve their mental disorder, you need to spend time, show care and affection with proper medication.

Schizophrenia is a terrible mental disorder that affects 1 percent of the US population. You can learn more about this condition, including schizophrenia test and schizophrenia definition on Clivir - the free learning community.

Living With Anxiety in Others

By Diana McAuliffe

LIVING WITH AN ANXIOUS PERSON
TIPS FOR YOUR SURVIVAL
This article is for all those people who have to live with anxious people. Those who are at the receiving end of the anxiety outlet and how they can deal with it.
Living with an anxious person means:-

• Never knowing when they will snap. When an anxious person feels frustrated and cornered they behave uncharacteristically. They will yell and often try to transfer their frustration onto the nearest person or the one they love the most.
• Treading on thin ice waiting for the snap. You never now what the final straw will be. It may be the next word you utter or a particular action that you do.
• Finding it hard not become a victim of the negative energy that you can encounter regularly. In fact it is hard not to become fearful or anxious yourself.
• Living in fear. Frightened to be the one to set off the anxiousness or be at the receiving end.

This situation can be very difficult mainly because the only person you can control is yourself. The other person is the only one who can change themselves.
You have to learn to deal with the situation and the person or get out of the relationship whether it be a boss,friend, partner or child.
Your own health and wellbeing becomes your priority. People like this can be draining.
Here are some hints to help people like this to cope:-

1. Learn not to take things said or done on a personal level. When the anxiety speaks remember it is the anxiety.
2. Learn to understand them but don't make the mistake of letting them control every situation. Feel empathy but keep your boundaries. Don't let their boundaries become yours.
3. Stand your own ground on the important issues and "don't sweat the small stuff."
4. Don't forget to take "me" time or "time out".
5. Talk about the anxiety incident once everything has calmed down. Never argue in the heat of the moment.
6. Exercise is a great release. It helps you to feel happier by releasing those happy endorphins. It releases unpent emotions.
7. Valerian is a wonderful herb. It allows you to remain calm and to be aware of what is going on without being drowsy. It also seems to help you not to be personally affected by what is happening. Please do not rely on this herb to resolve the problem but only as an aid when needed. Refer to a practitioner before commencing.
8. Remember that attitude is EVERYTHING. Keep positive!
9. Get help for the other person. perhaps therapy. Maybe go together.
10. Smile and laugh often.
11. Spend together time away from home and any toxic environment.
12. Enjoy each others company. Remember the good times.
13. Be a good listener.
14. Have relaxing music playing.
15. Have a list of affirmations and use them.
16. Be a person who sees the glass as half full not half empty.

These are only some hints and tips. Remember though that if your health fails then you cannot be of any help to anyone else. Also seek help. You do not have deal with this burden on your own.Friends and groups can be a tremendous release.

If you want more information on anxiety please see the website http://www.howtocureanxiety.com.au. There are over 80 articles and posts here. Also check out their 5step PEACE program and their products. There are many books, audios, videos and a very comprehensive package.

There Are Many Famous People With Manic Depression

By Dana Zarcone

Surprisingly enough, there are many famous people with manic depression. There are certainly more people around than many of us know who have been affected by depression. One of the major issues with depression is that we often think we're all alone. Famous people with manic depression and depression are out there. It's not just you and the rest of the "ordinary" people who suffer.
The reality is that those with some of the most creative and artistic minds suffer from depression and some physicians have tried to connect that personality type, with a bent toward depression. If you're suffering from depression or you have considered that you might be depressed, then you are certainly in very good company.
Many of the most creative and the most intelligent people on earth have suffered from depression, manic depression, or bipolar disorder at one point or another in their life. The secret to continuing, to moving forward in many cases is to get some help dealing with something that may be too difficult to deal with alone.
Depression can affect anyone. Simply having plenty of money, or a lot of friends, or a great deal of support, does not mean that you will never suffer from depression. While it may be slightly uncomfortable for many of us to admit that we have a mental disorder, it's no different from any other garden variety of illness. You can treat it effectively, and you should! Talking to someone about your feelings is the first step in getting the help that you may need to manage your depression. Seeking out help is the first step toward conquering your depression and getting back to enjoying your life. Still think it feels lonely?
Here are just a few of some of the famous people that you may know who have suffered from depression over long periods of time:
Russell Brand, actor and comedian
Kurt Cobain, musician and band member
Rosemary Clooney, actress and musician/singer
Patricia Cornwell, famous crime author
Richard Dreyfuss, actor and star of Jaws movies and Mr. Holland's Opus
Patty Duke Astin, actress and spokesperson
Carrie Fisher, Star Wars actress
Abbie Hoffman, Political activist
Jack Irons, Pearl Jam and Red Hot Chili Peppers Musician
Kay Redfield Jamison, noted psychologist and Psychiatry professor of Johns Hopkins (tried to get a connection to creativity and bipolar disorder introduced into psychiatry)
Kerry Katona, Television celebrity and pop singer for Atomic Kitten Margot Kidder, Actress
Vivien Leigh, Actress
Patrick Kroupa, famous hacker and writer
Kristy McNichol, Child and adult actress
Burgess Meridith, Penguin on Batman, noted actor
Florence Nightingale, famous nurse and health care worker.(heard voices and had several severe bouts with depression)
Sinéad O'Connor-singer, famed for her rude behavior and mistreatment of others
Ozzy Osbourne, singer.
Jane Pauley, television journalist
Edgar Allan Poe, noted poet and author of some very gloomy books
Margaret Trudeau, wife of former Canadian Prime minister and celebrity
Jean-Claude Van Damme, noted French actor
Vincent Van Gogh, artist
Pete Wentz, musician
In some cases, their battles with depression were lost, resulting in death from drug overdoses and/or suicide. However, in most cases, these people got help, and went on to do amazing things with their lives and so can you! You can defeat your illness and enjoy life.

Dana Zarcone is a National Certified Counselor. She created www.depression-test.net to assist those suffering with depression. Learn about manic depression by referencing her site.

Help To Overcome Claustrophobia

By Roseanna Leaton

Any phobia causes unnecessary discomfort, some more so than others. To suffer from a phobia means to experience abject fear in certain circumstances. In the case of claustrophobia this means that small or enclosed spaces are what constitute those circumstances.
Each individual will experience their fear in their own unique way. Some people who suffer from claustrophobia just cannot find a way in which to sit in the back seat of a car whilst others couldn't sit in a car at all. Other claustrophobia sufferers feel just fine in a car but are severely affected in rooms where they cannot find a seat close to the exit, such as in a theatre, cinema, church or auditorium.
Different people have different triggers to their phobia. But no matter what those triggers are the resulting feeling is that of discomfort and fear. The degree to which this is felt is also unique to the individual. Some people simply cannot do certain things, like get onto an airplane or into a car. Others can make themselves do it, albeit with heart pounding and breaking out in a cold sweat.
Logic tells the phobia sufferer that there is no need to be afraid, that they should feel fine and that there is nothing scary about these spaces and places. But logic and emotional experience seem to have the same inability to blend together as does oil and water.
You know how you should feel, but terror seems to wash over you like a tidal wave from nowhere. It just happens automatically, instinctively and subconsciously. You don't have to think about it. It just happens.
Your conscious mind thinks whilst your subconscious mind acts instinctively. The subconscious mind takes in perceptions about the environment in less than the blink of an eye and immediately links those perceptions to past experiences and pre-formed subconscious expectations.
Your subconscious mind is on "high alert" for anything that might be threatening or uncomfortable. Thus is anything in the current perceptive field creates a pattern match to something that has been uncomfortable in the past, it will trigger a chain of events that is probably all too familiar to you. Fear, discomfort, panic or terror sets in. This all happens before your logical mind has a split second to control what is happening.
Therefore to find a cure for a phobia you need to find a way in which to access your subconscious mind. Hypnosis fits the bill in an easy and natural way.
Hypnosis is a natural state of relaxation that allows you to access your subconscious mind. With hypnosis you can make suggestions to temper the automatic response that is causing you discomfort. You can in this way call a halt to the previous chain reaction that swept you into the throes of panic.
Hypnosis can in fact provide an extremely efficient and effective cure to phobias. It is something that many people do not think about but you might like to do a little research and see for yourself how and why it can work for you.
Roseanna Leaton, specialist in hypnosis phobia mp3 downloads.
P.S. Discover how you can focus your mind with hypnosis. Grab a free hypnosis mp3 from my website now.

Grab a free hypnosis mp3 from RoseannaLeaton.com and check out her library of hypnosis downloads and help cure claustrophobia.

What Does "Mental Illness" Actually Mean?

By Bradley Gordon

 

What kind of person do you picture when you hear the word "schizophrenic"? How would you react if you found out your best friend had a personality disorder?
What if someone suggested that YOU might have an anger management problem?
Unfortunately, most of the world hasn't yet realized that "mentally ill" does not translate into "crazy".
Many people suffer from the devastating effects of a mental health issue. In fact, studies show that up to 40% of the world experiences a mental health issue at some point in their lives.
So according to statistics, you know a LOT of people who are living with a mental illness. Maybe a small percentage of them are receiving treatment, but chances are the majority is too ashamed to seek diagnosis. Too many people consider "mental illness" to be a label synonymous with words such as "insane" or "unstable".
One of the most common reactions to a mental illness is to feel ashamed of it. Many people fear that they are at fault for the onset of the disorder. And while certain lifestyle choices and personality types can help to stimulate a mental illness, it's important to realize that a mental illness is almost always a result of an ungoverned chemical imbalance in the brain.
Perhaps the untreated mentally ill population doesn't realize how simple treatment can be. In many cases, a simple prescription will work wonders in the brain - rebalancing the hormones which are causing the problem.
A mental illness shouldn't be any more embarrassing than a physical one! After all, the root cause is a physiological malfunction of hormones in the brain - just as the root cause of diabetes is a physiological defect relating to the production of insulin.
There are thousands of people in the world right now who are unnecessarily suffering through the overwhelming symptoms of a mental illness. Are you one of them?
You could easily be subject to a chemical imbalance in your brain and not realize!
Do you ever feel as though you are not in control of your emotions? Does stress ever seem so overwhelming that you would rather give up on a situation than persevere? Do you ever find yourself worrying about situations that other people disregard as unnecessary? Do people call you paranoid, or ever accuse you of over thinking everything?
It's important to take into consideration that certain personality types may show symptoms of mental illnesses without actually having them. However, it is estimated that thousands of mental illnesses are left undiagnosed and untreated. You may be suffering from a mental health issue and not even realize.
Whether or not you think you are currently at risk for a mental illness, it is crucial that you take steps to strengthen your mind. You may not be aware of how intimately your physical health affects your mental health - but the connection is undeniable! Keeping your body healthy means keeping your mind healthy.
By keeping your mind healthy, you are being responsible to both yourself and your loved ones.
DON'T let the stigma associated with a mental health issue continue to disturb your life.
DO make an effort to reverse the discouraging and misled conception of mental health.
Start by restructuring your understanding of "mental illness". It doesn't mean "crazy".
It means "sick".
It means "treatable".

It's time to Understand Your Health. Our website places a heavy focus on mental health. Educate yourself on mental health issues in order to put an end to the misconceptions. In addition, learn more about how you can protect yourself from, or live with a mental illness.

It All Relates to Mental Health!

By Sarah Hilton

You are all pumped up to join the gym, you book your membership, you set a time for a personal fitness assessment and then you start going faithfully every week. Great, terrific, fantastic right? Three weeks pass, you just stop. Why? It really doesn't matter how many times you join a gym or exercise program, if you haven't worked on the mind your body will not follow. What do I mean? Let's take any goal you have set your mind to, whether it is losing weight, spending more time with family, find a job to name a few; you must have the mind set to build the success plan to achieve. Have you attempted these goals before, what went wrong, what is going to be different this time and who is your support for your mind in order for you to reach success. There is no personal trainer of the body that can prepare your mind in order for you to stay faithful to your goal. If you were depressed before going to the gym, you will be depressed after you go to the gym; you must work on the inside in order to work on the outside.
This is also a common misconception when it comes to injuries at work. Think of a WSIB claim, I believe that over 50% of these claims are based on what was on the mind of the person when the accident happened rather then the accident itself. Interestingly enough rehab works on the physical rather then the mental health. The person goes back to work, and provisions are put in place so that the employee can sit and not hurt their sore back, whether the person is sitting or standing the person is still depressed or anxious. Now, if the rehab and therapy worked on the inside and discovered the cause of the depression or anxiety the individual would be ready to return to work and in many cases the back pain would also subside.
To work out life, life needs to pay attention to the mental health of individuals. Let's teach our children to say "I feel anxious about my test today", instead of "I have a stomach ache." Let's call it what it is.
Next time you head out to begin a new journey, take a check into your mental health. How are you heading into this new experience. If you are anxious, build in techniques to cope with anxiety; this is what will help you be successful in your journey. If you are depressed about your weight, find a coach that can work on your emotions that come with food addictions before and during the journey of a weight loss group. You can obtain any goal, or dream; start by checking in with your mental health, your mindset. Success is just around the corner.

Sarah Hilton has built a company by combining her past work history of mental health with her love of speaking to supporting others in finding the life they want to live. You can see more by checking out http://www.spokenadvantage.com or [http://www.mentalhealthsolutions.ca]